I was born and raised in a small town in Western NY where I spent the better part of the first 26 years of my life. Family vacations were generally spent at places like Six Flags or Disney World, but once I was old enough to set out on my own I decided it was time to have some adventures.

Weekend trips to the Midwest? Sure!

Hop on a bus to the nation's capitol? Why not.

Quit my job and spend a few weeks in the woods hiking through New York and Connecticut with a backpack full of supplies? John Muir wasn't wrong when he said the quickest path to the universe was through a forest wilderness.

I've settled down for the moment in Chicago, although after school is finished I'm looking to move to the PNW (or possibly for school, depending on what grad schools accept me). I love to try new foods, listen to music I've never heard before, strike out on a mountain trail for the first time, and generally be amazed by the infinite number of things on this planet that I never thought I'd experience.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I would 100x rather experience a new city from the perspective of someone who has seen it and lived it for themselves as opposed to staying in a hotel and being shown the "sterile" version of the city. I tend to prefer going to a quirky local restaurant and checking out an up and coming band instead of having a T.G.I. Friday's-and-a-movie night. Locals (almost) always know the best places to hike, too!

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I don't have a couch at the moment (major bummer) so hosting is problematic. I'll happily show people around my lovely city, though, and would love to experience yours.

Interests

Music - both playing and listening, hiking, backpacking, snowboarding, skiing, coffee drinking, craft beer, good scotch, great food, photography, and I'm sure there's plenty more that I'm forgetting at the moment.

• photography
• dining
• beer
• coffee
• drinking
• music
• hiking
• backpacking
• camping
• skiing
• snowboarding

Music, Movies, and Books

We'll go with my top three in each category to keep things easy.

Music: 311, Motion City Soundtrack, The Lonely Forest

Movies: The Royal Tenenbaums, Star Wars (the original trilogy), The Big Lebowski

Books: The Planets, Breakfast of Champions, High Fidelity

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Fallen asleep to the wonderful sight of fireflies overhead on the Appalachian Trail and woken up to realize I'd camped underneath a giant mulberry tree, which made the camp stove oatmeal taste as good as any gourmet meal I've ever had that morning.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States